


Let's Sit Around The Campfire

by BlurglesmurfKlaine



Category: Glee
Genre: Angst to Fluff, Blaine is an oblivious idiot whats fucking new, Camping, Empath!Blaine, Friends to Lovers, Halloween, Jealousy, M/M, Miscommunication, Season 2 - AU, scary stories/urban legends, yes the title is from a spongebob song don't judge me
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-16
Updated: 2020-04-16
Packaged: 2021-03-02 05:02:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,234
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23679598
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlurglesmurfKlaine/pseuds/BlurglesmurfKlaine
Summary: On the night of Halloween, the New Directions decide to go camping. For Blaine, an empath, this isn't too exciting. But spending time with Kurt, his best friend who he's hopelessly in love with, definitely is.Season 2 - AUWritten for the Glee Potluck Big Bang Fic Exchange!
Relationships: Blaine Anderson/Kurt Hummel
Comments: 17
Kudos: 109
Collections: Glee Potluck Big Bang 2020





	Let's Sit Around The Campfire

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Esperanto](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Esperanto/gifts).



> A/N: As always, huge shoutout to my beta, [Adri](somefeministtheatre.tumblr.com). Best damn beta ever, and i'll take that to the bank
> 
> Some parts have characters telling traditional scary stories/urban legends, so if that’s not your thing then this is your warning 
> 
> **Esperanto asked for:**  
>  One of the characters is an Empath  
> Jealousy  
> Friends to Lovers  
> Miscommunication  
> Angst to Fluff
> 
> AU, set season 2 Halloween (because the Halloween chapter of Express Yourself is one of my faves 💞)
> 
> I did my best darling, I hope you like it!!!

Growing up, Blaine’s least favorite holiday had to be Halloween. 

He remembered trick-or-treating down the street without a worry in the world before feeling someone else’s fear—usually a teenager who had just gotten jump-scared by their hooligan friends. He could also always feel some residual anxiety from all of the younger kids, and it became too overwhelming. He’d given up ever trying to watch a scary movie in a room with other people, since having their fear dog-piled on top of him was just too much to take. 

It was frustrating, feeling all these emotions and knowing somewhere deep inside that they weren’t even his.

He never really understood it until the Halloween he screamed his lungs out until he was blue in the face when his mom suggested Cooper take him trick or treating. He had cried and begged her to just stay home instead. She asked what the matter was and he reluctantly explained it the best he could.

She explained to him that there was a certain gift that had been passed down generation to generation in the family, and at age six, Blaine Anderson found out what the word empath meant—and that he was one.

Despite all of this, he still found himself hiking through the woods on October 31st of his junior year of high school. He’d learned to control his ability now, as his mom had taught him how to shut it off so that he could only read people’s emotions if he got close enough to touch them. He’d had this mental block so long that he didn’t even want to think about how overwhelming it would be if he removed it.

Even though he felt like he had more grasp on it now, he still associated Halloween with negative emotions. Why couldn’t it be more like Christmas or Valentine’s Day? Christ, why was he even out tonight?

“Are we almost there yet?” Santana whined. “Who let Trouty Mouth decide what we do for Halloween?

Kurt elbowed her in the rib cage. “Because he’s going through a rough time right now with his family…” he whispered fiercely into her ear. “And if camping and ghost stories help take his mind off of that, then that’s what we’re doing.”

Oh, right.  _ That’s _ why he even considered coming on this New Directions excursion in the first place—the ridiculous crush he had on his best friend of nearly three years.

Kurt leaned over and grabbed Blaine’s hand. “I know how you feel about Halloween, and I think it’s really brave of you to come with us.” Kurt squeezed his hand and Blaine felt his heart melt. God, he was so glad Kurt didn’t have his ability, because if he did, he would see right through Blaine.

Not that Blaine would ever use his ability on Kurt—he respected their friendship too much. Besides, it was kind of cheating in a way, to use it just to see if Kurt felt the same way about him. On top of all that, Blaine’s empathy was the only thing he’d ever kept from Kurt. Nobody knew, and Blaine liked it that way. If nobody knew, nobody could ask him for favors, the way random people his mother hadn’t seen in years who showed up on his front porch would. And nobody could decide he was some kind of freak and leave him when he’d just revealed the most intimate and personal detail about himself.

After what seemed like an eternity, they finally reached the campsite.

“We walked three miles with backpacks and duffle bags for this?” Mercedes asked, out of breath and gesturing to the barren landscape before them, complete with a fire pit and logs to sit on.

Kurt wrinkled his nose. “I don’t think so. These pants don’t touch anything that comes from the ground.”

“Technically everything comes from the ground,” Blaine pointed out.

“Come on, guys! This is gonna be so much fun!” Tina announced, sprinting to take a seat and dragging Mike behind her. 

Everyone took a seat on the logs—even Kurt, after digging through his bag to find a towel and laying it over the log. 

“I’ll even get us started with a scary story while Finn, Sam, and Puck pitch the tents and start the fire.”

Finn pouted. “Wait, why are we doing the grunt work?”

“Be honest, honey,” Rachel started. “Do you think anyone else here knows how to do that?”

“Good point.”

The three boys went to set up, staying within earshot so they could listen. Blaine stayed within Kurt’s grasp, knowing he could hold on to him if he ever got too scared. 

“Alright, everybody!” Tina said excitedly. “Flashlights out! This is gonna be a good one, I looked up Korean horror stories just for the occasion.”

Kurt reached over and grabbed Blaine’s hand before leaning in and whispering, “If it gets too scary, just let me know and I’ll create a diversion or something,” he said with a grin and quick wink.

Blaine flushed, grateful that the dim light from the mood hid his reaction. “Thanks.”

Tina gripped the flashlight with both hands and shone it upwards underneath her chin before beginning her story. “In Korea and many other Eastern Asian countries, traditional folklore tells the tale of a Nine-Tailed Fox. It is believed that if a fox lives to be a thousand years, it can become a fox-spirit and shapeshift between human and Fox form freely. 

“In one instance, a couple had two sons, and desperately wanted a daughter. So desperately, that they prayed and prayed for one, claiming they’d be overjoyed by the birth of a daughter, even if she were… a fox.

“The family was indeed blessed with a daughter, but as she grew into a child, her older brothers noticed that something was… off about her. She would play outside for hours on end, staying out much later than most other kids. Every morning after she’d stay out especially late, the family would wake up to more and more dead livestock on their farm.

“The brothers approached their parents, claiming that their beloved daughter was in fact a Gumiho, or a Nine-Tailed Fox. Their parents were enraged with their sons—how dare they insinuate such a horrible thing about their blessing of a child—and sent them away to the market for the day to buy that week’s groceries.

“After the day’s chores were finished, the boys returned home. They slowly, carefully creaked open the door… only to find their sister hunched over the dead bodies of their parents, consuming them. Slowly, she lifted her head up to meet their horrified gazes… and the last thing they saw was their sister lifting her head to smile a bloody smile at them…” 

By the end of the story, even Puck—finished helping Sam and Finn with the tents—was stunned into stillness. “Holy shit,” he mumbled.

Tina clicked the flashlight off and bounced up and down in her seat. “The end!” she announced brightly.

“Okay, I think we could all use a little warm fire light after  _ that _ ,” Finn said before striking a match and throwing it into the fire pit he’d set up. 

“Well, what do you expect from your resident goth girl?” Tina quipped. “I’m a connoisseur of all things dark and creepy.”

“While we’re on the topic,” Rachel started. “I guess it’s my turn to tap into my performative side and grace you with my storytelling talents. And can we all just have a round of applause for the boys for making this fire?” she prompted, as Finn took a seat next to her. “We’d all be freezing if it weren’t for these lovely three.”

“Oh, yes, whatever would we do without the strong men of the New Directions?” Kurt asked, clapping and sticking his tongue out playfully at Finn. 

“Okay, okay!” Rachel said excitedly. “Everyone gather round, and let me tell you about this thing that “actually” happened to one of my dads’ redneck cousin’s friend.” She used finger quotes for emphasis, eliciting an eye roll from Blaine. Of course she didn’t believe in the supernatural.

“Alright,” she began, gesticulating the way she did when she told stories. “So one night when she was growing up, my dad’s cousin’s friend—god this is gonna get confusing if I don’t mention her name is Elise—and her brother Patrick were spending the night at their cousins Elaine and Nick’s place. They’ve got a  _ huge  _ backyard, one of those wide fields that just stretches into woods behind the house. 

“The boys decide to head out into the backwoods and shoot at things with Nick’s dad’s bb gun, in true redneck fashion, while the girls opt to stay and splash around in the pool. About an hour later, the boys come telling the girl to run and get the polaroid so they can take pictures of what they’d caught. Elise grabs the camera, then follows them into the woods, where Nick and Patrick lead them to the still carcass of a snow-white owl, it’s left eye shot out. Elise already has a foreboding feeling, like this is an omen or something, but she stays quiet and lets Elaine take the photos.

“The four of them sleep in the living room, all knocked out after a long day of fun. But Elise finds herself waking up in the middle of the night, her spine tingling. Through the big bay windows, she can see something—some _ one _ —moving, pacing back and forth through the yard. She gently wakes up Elaine, and points out the figure. The girls realize that it’s a woman. She’s got the palest skin they’ve ever seen, and long straight black hair. They can’t see her face, though, because she’s staring down at the ground as she paces—back and forth, and back and forth—her alabaster gown flowing in the wind…

“And then, she… stops. Lifts her head, and turns it to the window.

“The woman, she’s…  _ missing an eye,” _ Rachel’s eyes glimmered with excitement when the New Directions all collectively gasped. 

“To this day, Elise refuses to step foot on the property. But don’t worry,” she continued, waving a dismissive hand. “None of it’s real, obviously. Anything supernatural can usually be logically explained.”

Every muscle in Blaine’s body tensed. What a luxury she must have to be able to dismiss the possibility of such things existing. Something about that mentality never quite sat right with Blaine. Most people didn’t know someone with his abilities even existed, so if  _ he _ was real, who the hell knew what else was?

He suddenly stood up to break away from the group, ignoring the cries of protests calling his name. He couldn’t listen to anymore stories.

He walked through the trees until he reached a nearby clearing and couldn’t hear the voices of the New Directions anymore. 

Finally, silence.

Blaine couldn’t pick up on people’s emotions without touching them anymore, but somehow being around people sometimes overwhelmed him. He loved his friends, he really did. He loved hanging out with them and spending time with them and doing all the things that friends do, but sometimes he just needed a moment alone to remind himself that he was his own person. He needed to get his thoughts and emotions in order just to check that they were actually  _ his _ .

“Hey,” a gentle voice called out behind him. 

Blaine jumped, a bit startled, and turned around. He relaxed when he could make out Kurt’s familiar silhouette underneath the white of the full moon. “Hey,” he mumbled back.

“You okay?”

“Yeah… I just get freaked out with that stuff, you know.”

Kurt reached out and placed a comforting hand on Blaine’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, none of it’s real,” Kurt said. Blaine knew he was only trying to be a good friend, but he still internally cringed at the phrase.

“We don’t  _ know _ that, though.”

Kurt shrugged. “Maybe not, but if we can’t know for sure, then why even worry about it?”

How could Blaine possibly make Kurt understand?  _ Well of course he doesn’t understand, you’ve never told him. _

But there was a first time for everything. 

Maybe it was time to come out of the supernatural closet and just tell somebody about his ability… not just anybody—Kurt. If there was ever a person to tell, it was definitely him.

Blaine reached out and clasped Kurt’s hands in his. “There’s something I want to tell you.”

“Blaine, you came out three years ago, we’re good,” he teased with a cocked eyebrow.

“No, really…”

Kurt’s face sobered. “Of course. You can tell me anything.”

“I’m… there’s this thing that’s sort of a family trait, and it’s been passed down from generation to generation. And it’s um, a little unusual.”  _ Just get it over with. _ “I’m an empath,” he said in a rush of breath. At Kurt’s confused expression, he continued his explanation. “I can um—can tell what other people are feeling... when I touch them…”

He felt Kurt’s hands stiffen in his.

Kurt wasn’t silent long, but it was long enough to strike panic into Blaine’s heart. Was Kurt freaking out? Did he think Blaine was some sort of freak of nature? Was he about to lose his best friend?

He wasn’t proud of what he did then, but he had to know. He just  _ had _ to know if this was going to change his friendship with Kurt. He focused in on Kurt’s skin touching his and felt…  _ Horror, dread, and… is that embarrassment? _

Blaine wasn’t able to fully discern the final emotion he felt because Kurt promptly snatched his hands away and held them to his chest. Blaine’s chest flooded with hurt, but he did his best not to let it show on his face.

“So…” Kurt started cautiously. “You know how other people feel? Can you tell how other people feel... a-about  _ you?” _

Despite his hurt feelings, Blaine answered. “Only if I want to. It used to not be so easy to control, but now I’ve limited it so that I can only feel the person I’m touching. Otherwise it gets too overwhelming.”

“Have you ever… used it on me?”

Blaine swallowed hard. He should have just told the truth. He should’ve, but Kurt was staring back at him like he was nothing more than a stranger, and not his best friend of nearly three years, and Blaine couldn’t stand it. He couldn’t lose Kurt—at any cost. 

Besides, it was  _ barely _ a lie, right? 

“No,” he lied. “Not if you don’t want me to.”

Blaine tried not to take it personally when his best friend let out a sigh of relief (emphasis on the  _ tried _ part). He hoped he didn’t look as panicked as he sounded when he asked, “Do you think I’m a freak? Or some sort of crazy person?”

“What? No! I don’t think you’re a freak,” Kurt responded without hesitation. He gnawed on the inside of his cheek nervously. “But… you know how I feel about god and all of that stuff, so… Yeah, it’s a little hard to swallow,” he admitted.

Blaine looked down at his shoes in disappointment.

“But I also know that you’re not a liar, Blaine.” Kurt added. “And if this is your truth, then I accept it because you’re my best friend. So, thank you for telling me. I think that was very brave of you.”

Blaine scoffed, knowing that was the last word he’d use to describe himself. “I’m really not that brave.”

“Don’t say that,” Kurt contested sternly. “Of course you are.”

“You wouldn’t think that if you knew—” Blaine cut himself off. 

“If I knew what?” Kurt prodded after a moment of silence.

He just bit both lips and shook his head. 

“I promise you, Blaine, there is nothing in the world you could tell me that could make me love you less.”

It was moments like these that reminded Blaine why he was so tragically head over heels for his best friend. Kurt’s capacity for compassion was unmatched by anybody else Blaine had ever met. Blaine could look into other people’s emotions—feel precisely what they were feeling—but Kurt had this remarkable ability to  _ understand _ them, and without any trace of judgement, no less. 

Despite his own insecurities, Blaine knew he was safe with Kurt. He drew in a deep, steadying breath of Autumn air before beginning.

“Back in middle school, before McKinley,” he started. “There was this dance… and I went with my friend, the other only gay guy in the school. When we were dancing, my hand brushed this guy who had been harassing us all night and… I felt—I felt…  _ anger _ and  _ hatred _ like I’d never felt before, Kurt. 

“It was-was so raw and absolutely terrifying and I… I called my mom crying to come pick me up because I’d never been so scared. I begged my friend to come with me but he was adamant about staying. I couldn’t,” Blaine felt his own voice trembling like a heavy bead of water on a spider’s web. “I knew I  _ couldn’t _ stay there, Kurt.” 

His breath quickened and in an instant, Kurt’s hand was on Blaine’s again, rubbing soothing circles into his palm. He matched the pace of his breath to Kurt’s motions and calmed himself enough to continue.

“And the-the next day they found him... unconscious, outside the school gym. He’d been beaten up, and I knew who did it, but I had no proof because I wasn’t  _ there _ . I let him get beat up all alone because I wasn’t strong enough to stay. I’m not brave. I’m nothing more than a coward who used this  _ thing _ to save himself.”

“Blaine,” Kurt hissed, tears of his own beginning to form. “Keeping yourself safe does  _ not _ make you a coward.”

“I wish I could believe you, Kurt,” lamented Blaine. “But I know what I did, and if it makes you see me differently, I don’t blame you…”

Kurt stood there, letting a contemplative silence take over their conversation. Blaine watched his best friend’s face—features barely discernible when all that illuminated them was the ambient moonlight scattered among the trees—fill with… not sympathy, per se, but something along those lines. It was as if he couldn’t bring himself to comprehend why Blaine felt this way about himself.

Kurt’s chest rose and fell with a deep breath. “I want you to do your thing… on me,” he said.

Blaine wasn’t sure what he expected Kurt to say, but it certainly wasn’t that. “You… want me to  _ read _ you?”

Kurt nodded. Slowly, uncertain at first, but gaining vigor with every bob of his head.

Blaine hesitantly stepped forward. He’d technically done this before, but it was strange now that Kurt  _ knew _ he was doing this. He shut his eyes tightly, honing in on his best friend’s emotions. He felt a surge of...  _ pride. Unconditional love, _ and most of all,  _ understanding. _

He felt like an idiot for ever thinking Kurt could judge him for what happened. 

Eyes bright with tears and a lump forming in his throat, Blaine tugged and brought Kurt into a snug embrace, secure and warm against the cool night air.

“Thank you,” he murmured.

“Nothing to thank me for,” Kurt replied. He brought his head back and smiled warmly at Blaine. “Let’s head back to the campsite.”

Blaine nodded and strung his arm behind Kurt’s back, wrapping around his waist as they walked back to their friends.

Branches cracked under their feet as they stepped into the campsite. 

“Oh look, the pretty ponies are finally back from their midnight quickie.”

Kurt glared at Santana as they reclaimed their seats. “Shut  _ up,  _ Satan. It’s Halloween, don’t you have some children to terrorize instead of perpetuating the stereotype that people can’t be friends without having feelings for each other?”

“That would be true if you didn’t have a glaringly obvious crush on—”

“So!” Kurt announced loudly, voice drowning out the last bit of Santana’s sentence. Blaine furrowed his eyebrows, suspicion rising in his chest. What did Santana mean by all that? “Where did Finn go?” Kurt asked, pointing out his absence.

“To get snacks from the tents,” Mercedes answered. “Once he’s back, Santana says she’s got a good one for us.”

Blaine leaned in towards Kurt, the way they had a hundred times before the conversation they’d had a few moments ago. Only this time, he felt Kurt’s muscles tense up underneath his touch. 

He turned his head up to the taller boy. “Everything okay?”

Kurt blanched. “Y-yeah, why?”

Blaine swallowed. “Just checking.” He was starting to get insecure about Kurt’s uneasiness. Why was he being so weird all of a sudden? Blaine knew Kurt didn’t judge him for running away at the dance, but was Kurt still freaked out because of his ability? Did he think any less of Blaine? Did he even  _ believe _ Blaine? 

Blaine knew he should have just had good faith in Kurt, and taken his word for it that everything was okay, but… he couldn’t keep his suspicion at bay. If Kurt was having doubts about their friendship, he wanted to know.

So he inched his hand closer and closer to Kurt until their pinkies touched.

_ Nerves, a little bit of giddiness.  _

That’s when it hit Blaine. The energy he was getting from Kurt, Santana’s comment from earlier. His best friend had a crush on someone in the New Directions. 

But why would he try to keep that from Blaine?

Blaine scooted closer to Kurt, hoping to make skin contact again, gather more clues, when Finn returned to the circle with more snacks. The New Directions cheered and clapped, Kurt included. Blaine had almost been close enough to grab his hand again, but now he couldn’t. 

Instead, he rested his head in the crook of Kurt’s shoulder, cheek touching the skin where Kurt’s neck curved into his shoulder. 

There it was again. The undeniable crush signal he’d gotten before. He lifted his head and scanned the circle to see where his friend’s attention might be, only to see Kurt—cheeks red from more than just the heat of the campfire—staring right at…

_ Finn? _

Blaine’s heart sank. Of course. It made perfect sense. Of course Kurt wasn’t over his year old crush on McKinley’s star Quarterback. 

Still, he couldn’t snuff out that last bit of hope that said he could be wrong. He needed to make sure one more time, but how?

“Alright, now that Grimace is back, can we please get to my story?” Santana asked impatiently. “Because clearly it’s going to kick all of your stories’ asses. Like, it’s not a competition, but if it were, I’d be winning.”

Sam grabbed a bag of fruit snacks from the bounty Finn brought and tore open the bag to shove a handful of them in his mouth. “Enough with the jibber jabber,” he said through his chewing. “Let’s get on with the story. I want to be so terrified that I have trouble sleeping tonight.”

“I think we all will, having seen Rachel in that outfit,” Kurt muttered.

The tiny brunette dropped her jaw and made a face at him. 

“What?” He threw his hands out in question. “I  _ told _ you that sweater was tacky.”

“Anyways!” Blaine butted in, knowing how quickly tiffs between Rachel and Kurt could escalate. “How about that story, Santana?”

“Thanks for the intro, Fonzie.” She shifted in her seat before leaning forward so that the firelight glowed lightly on her face, he features casting dancing shadows across her face. 

Lowering her voice, she began her tale.

“This is a traditional Mexican legend that dates back centuries, about a woman who can be heard crying by rivers at night. My abuela told me that she’s called La Llorona.

“Once, a long time ago, before anyone here was even a twinkle in their parents’ eyes, there was a woman who lived in a Mexican city near the Rio Grande River. She married a rich man, with whom she eventually had two sons. Then their marriage hit a rough patch: her husband spent less and less time at home, and whenever he was home, he paid attention only to the children. Her suspicions of an affair were confirmed when she saw him at the town market with another woman.”

Blaine took the opportunity to string his arm through Kurt’s. He saw Finn give a pointed look at their hands and smirk knowingly at Kurt. It was then he felt a twinge of chagrin coming from Kurt, the same kind he himself felt whenever Kurt caught him staring.

That was all the confirmation Blaine needed to smother the last bit of hope his optimistic heart held. It was clear; Kurt still had a crush on Finn.

“Enraged beyond reason, she led her two children to the river and threw them in. Immediately, she was overcome with regret and tried to reach into the river to undo what she had done in her jealous rage… but after hours of searching the turbulent waters and crying out for her children, she came up empty handed. 

“Overwhelmed with grief, she picked up a large stone and walked into the river to drown herself. When she reached the gates of heaven, she was denied entry—her children had not been baptized and could not find the path to heaven without their mother. So she was sent back down to roam the earth in search of her children.

“They say,” Santana said lowly. “That if you listen very closely at night, near any body of water… you can hear her crying,  _ Ay, mis hijos… Ay… _ ” Her voice dwindled down, softer and softer until it was barely audible.

A pair of hands pressing down on Blaine’s shoulders and a voice screaming out  _ “Mis hijos!” _ from behind made him yelp embarrassingly loud. 

Thankfully, he wasn’t the only one. He had been Quinn’s unsuspecting victim, but Rachel had been Brittany’s, so his shout was covered up by Rachel’s histrionic screech. Many other members had been jolted out of their seats in surprise.

Santana began cackling maniacally. “The unholy trinity strikes again!”

“You guys suck,” Blaine grumbled.

“Oh why don’t you cry about it to your boyfriend, Borat?” She rolled her eyes and gave a pointed look to Kurt.

Blaine clenched his jaw, felt embarrassment burning bright in the pit of his stomach. Was his crush on Kurt really so obvious?

Santana knew, clearly. And she knew about Kurt’s crush on Finn. From that, Blaine gathered that everybody in their friend group had known about his unrequited feelings.

For the second time that night, he stormed off into the forest. He knew it was a little immature, but how many of his friends had known this whole time and hadn’t told him that the guy he liked was in love with somebody else?

Not long after he'd gone off to the same clearing from earlier, a familiar voice caught his attention again.

“Blaine, what’s wrong?”

He whipped around, feeling heartbroken and embarrassed.

“I know about your crush, Kurt,” he blurted out.

His best friend went pale. “Wh-what? How… How did you find out?”

Blaine suddenly realized that in telling Kurt he knew, he’d be admitting how he found out. He stayed silent for a moment, stewing in his guilt.

The fear left Kurt’s face, quickly replaced by a calm anger. “How did you  _ know,  _ Blaine?”

“I… I just needed to know why you were acting so weird around me. I wasn’t sure if it was because of my ability or—”

“So you read me?” Kurt accused. “You used your ability on me without telling me? After specifically promising you never had or ever would?”

“I just had to know that this wouldn’t change our friendship,” Blaine desperately tried to explain.

“And you couldn’t just trust me? You had to go into my head like some Hannibal Lecter type psycho and untangle my innermost emotions?” Kurt grew silent and swallowed nervously. “So… you know how I feel now.”

Blaine looked down at his feet. “Yeah. I know,” he muttered, too ashamed to look up at his best friend who clearly didn’t like him back. 

“And… you don’t have anything to say about it?”

“I guess it’s not really my place to say anything,” he said bitterly.

Kurt gaped at him for a moment. “Wow… okay,” he muttered in disbelief. “I’m going home.”

“What, why?”

“Because this has been embarrassing and heartbreaking enough—finding out the person I love doesn’t love me back, so I just want to go home. Before the rest of the New Directions bring it up.”

Blaine’s eyebrows knit together. “I won’t tell anyone,” he promised.

“As if they don’t already know, Blaine! Why do you think Santana made that comment? You also said you wouldn’t use your ability on me, and yet we’re in this mess.” 

Blaine flinched, but knew Kurt was right. 

“I just… it kind of hurts to be around you right now.” Kurt quickly turned around and rushed through the trees, leaving a promise of, “I’ll see you on Monday, I guess,” behind him.

Blaine groaned and buried his head in his hands. He should have gone after Kurt, but knew that he might need some time away since Blaine had betrayed their friendship in a way.

With a sigh, he headed back to the campsite. 

One by one, the New Directions recounted tales that had either happened to them or been passed down through their cultures. Eventually, everyone had gone except Blaine.

“Your turn, Blainey Days,” Tina sang, wriggling in her seat excitedly.

“I um, don’t really know what to say,” he mumbled half-heartedly. 

“Come on, everyone else told a scary story! Well… except Brittany.”

“The plight of drilling for babies is something we should all really be terrified of, Tina,” Brittany said.

Blaine rolled his eyes. “Okay, I guess there is this one story my grandma told me when I was younger. She said this happened in her hometown. Kinda stuck with me.”

“Yes!” Tina exclaimed excitedly.

“Okay,” Blaine began, surprisingly getting into it. “So there was this beautiful couple, Patel and Greg. They loved to travel and see all the beauty of the world, but their favorite place was this cliff in the local park. They felt closest to god there, and it was where they got engaged and married.

“Soon after they got married, Patel became pregnant. Of course, they were overjoyed when they discovered the news, but when Patel gave birth, they noticed some things were… off about the child. Her eyes were irregular and different sizes, one arm was severely atrophied, and her left ear was folded over. Despite the midwife’s reassurances that Greg and Patel’s daughter would live a long and happy life, the couple was not satisfied.

“They stole away in the middle of the night with their newborn to their favorite place on earth—the cliff. Patel held her daughter out at arms length… then let go.” There were shocked gasps all around the circle. “Greg placed a hand on Patel’s back and said,  _ We’ll try again. _

“Soon enough, Patel was pregnant again, and this time they gave birth to a beautiful baby girl who’s features were a seamless blend of both her attractive parents. They named her Angela.”

Blaine was nearly done with his story when Finn’s phone started ringing off the hook. The tallest member of the New Directions looked down at the lit up screen, furrowing his eyebrows. “Uh, sorry guys. You keep going, Blainers. I gotta take this.” 

He disappeared into the brush and Blaine couldn’t help but bitterly think,  _ It’s probably Kurt, calling to check in on Finn, the love of his life.  _ He shook the thought from his head before continuing the story.

“On Angela’s fourth birthday party, Greg and Patel decided to take Angela up to the cliff so they could show her their favorite view. However, Angela was reluctant. As they ascended higher and higher, they noticed their daughter becoming more and more distressed.

“Angela was screaming and crying by the time they reached the top, making such a huge scene that her parents were starting to get embarrassed. Finally, the daughter cried out:  _ Please, please don’t throw me over the edge again! I’m pretty now! I came back pretty so you would love me. Don’t you love me?” _

He shrugged, all his friends staring back at him wide eyed. “I don’t know if it’s true or not, but it always freaked me out.”

As Blaine wrapped up his story, Finn finally returned to the circle. His face was completely blanched with dread despite the warm light of the fire.

“That—that was Burt,” he said, phone shaking in his hands. “He said Kurt called to tell him that he was coming home early, but never showed... That was over an hour ago.”

* * *

Rachel called the cops, who were  _ wildly _ unhelpful. A missings person's report couldn’t be made until they’d been gone for at least twenty four hours or unless it was suspicious circumstances. Seeing as it was Halloween, they were less inclined to believe teenagers calling in about said “suspicious circumstances”.

So the New Directions split up into pairs, but kept their phones on them in case one of them found Kurt.

Blaine and Sam roamed around the forest, calling out Kurt’s name intermittently, never getting so much as a hoot from an owl in return.

“Kurt!” Blaine cried out, cupping his hands around his mouth. He tried twice more, and by last try, he was shouting so loud that his voice had cracked. 

Sam grabbed Blaine’s shoulder. “Hey,” he reassured him. “We’re gonna find him, okay?”

“I never even got a chance to tell him how I feel,” Blaine said brokenly.

“When we find him,” Sam replied. “You should tell him. ‘Cause I’m pretty sure he feels the same.”

“I know for a fact he doesn’t…” Blaine mumbled to himself. He added, louder, for Sam to hear, “Do you mind if we split up for a bit? I just… want to be alone for a bit.”

Sam looked reluctant, but gave in anyway. “Okay, but share your location with me. I don’t want you getting lost, too.”

Blaine did as he was told, and Sam headed out into the distance, calling Kurt’s name into the woods.

As soon as he felt Sam was far enough, Blaine closed his eyes and mentally prepared himself for what he was about to do. He hadn’t picked up on emotions without skin contact for nearly a decade, what if—now, when Kurt needed him—he couldn’t do it anymore? What if he took down that mental block and couldn’t put it back up?

The second one terrified him a bit more than the first, but was still a price he was willing to pay if it meant finding his best friend.

Taking a deep breath in, he focused on the outline of his body, just like his mom taught him all those years ago. He traced it with his mind over and over again, until his mind’s eye could see a colorless barrier around it. 

Then he imagined stepping out of it. He hadn’t gone through the logistics of it with his mom, but he was hoping that if he thought of it as stepping out, instead of breaking it, he could come back to it when he needed to.

Nothing, for a second.

And then, a lot.

Twelve waves of  _ fear and deep concern _ suddenly rushing at him, so strong it almost knocked him off his feet. But surprisingly, nothing he couldn’t handle.

He honed in on the feeling of fear that was the strongest, the one that felt lost and utterly terrified and (Jesus, it hurt Blaine to know Kurt was feeling  _ that _ scared) followed it, occasionally calling his friend’s name out into the woods.

He chased the emotions for a good twenty minutes before he cried out Kurt’s name.

Finally, he got a response. 

“Blaine?” a distant voice cried.

“Kurt!?” Blaine shouted back.

“Blaine! Blaine I’m over here!”

He broke out into a sprint, calling out Kurt’s name every step of the way until Kurt’s voice stopped him.

“Wait, stop! Stop running! There’s a drop off!”

Blaine halted just in time to avoid a sudden fall. He felt the tips of his toes hanging over nothing and his stomach churned. He pulled out his phone and flashed the light to illuminate Kurt, on the ground, pants all dirtied up, a little torn.

The incline was steep, but no taller than Finn. 

“I’m coming down there, Kurt. If I slide down, I should be fine.”

“Be careful, B,” Kurt warned him.

Blaine slowly started inching his way down the edge towards Kurt when he felt heat flare up around his right ankle. It was dull, like an echo, but he still gasped in pain a little.

“What’s wrong?” Kurt asked, panic rising in his voice. 

“Nothing,” Blaine explained. “Just got this weird ache in my…” 

Kurt was quiet for a moment. “Blaine… I wasn’t watching where I was going and I—I slipped and fell. My phone broke when it hit the ground… I twisted my ankle, and it hurts too much to walk, which is why I stayed here.”

“Wait… right or left?”

“My right…”

“Oh… wow, didn’t know I could do that,” Blaine mused. He would have taken more time to marvel at this new development in his ability, but at the moment all his focus was on not tripping down the hill. 

Finally, he reached the ground and lunged towards Kurt, pulling him into his embrace.

_ Relief _ . But this time, it was all Blaine. If anything had happened to Kurt… god, he didn’t even want to think about it.

“Kurt, oh thank god thank good thank god.” Blaine pulled back, smoothing Kurt’s hair down like a worried mother. “Other than your ankle, are you okay? Do you think you can stand up if I help you?”

Kurt nodded, and once again Blaine was reminded how level headed and brave Kurt could be in times of distress.

Blaine wrapped an arm around his best friend and helped him to his feet.

He whipped out his phone to call Burt first, to tell him his son had been found. He was beyond relieved to hear Kurt was fine. Blaine told him to meet them at the local emergency clinic. After checking his friend’s locations, he called Finn to meet them at his truck, since he was the person with a vehicle closest to the parking lot.

They walked together for a while, the only sounds coming from ambient forest noise and the occasional labored grunt from Kurt.

“I’m so sorry, Kurt,” Blaine finally blurted out.

“Nothing to be sorry for,” he chuckled. “I should’ve been watching where I was going.”

“No, I… I mean for reading you, when I said I wouldn’t.”

“Oh.” Kurt looked down at the ground. “That.”

“I still… I still really want to be friends, if you’re not too pissed at me. Though, I know you have every right to be.”

Kurt sighed. “I mean, no, you definitely shouldn’t have done that, but if I’m being honest… I was mostly just… upset that you didn’t have much to say about what… you felt me feel.”

They finally reached the parking lot, and luckily, Finn’s truck wasn’t too far. Blaine opened the bed of the truck and helped Kurt up on to it so he could take pressure off his leg before responding.

“I mean, I guess I don’t have anything positive to say.” Blaine couldn’t keep a quip from slipping out because he understood the whole love is love sentiment but…  _ Finn? _

Kurt bristled. “Thanks,” he muttered. “That’s exactly what I wanna hear right now.”

“Listen, this sucks for me, too, okay?”

“Oh, I’m sorry my emotions are such an inconvenience to you.”

“Look, I’m just saying it’s a little weird, okay? Like, it definitely would’ve been a lot less weird before Burt and Carole started dating but… Kurt, you guys are like brothers. And was I so crazy to think—or at least hope—that… that  _ I _ was the one you liked?”

Kurt stared back at him with bewilderment. “What!?”

“I’m not saying Finn isn’t a great guy,” Blaine rambled on. “But, he’s straight and has a girlfriend and your dad is dating his mom and all of that even without the whole lamp incident last year—!”

_ “Blaine!” _

The shorter boy finally froze, wondering if he’d said too much.

“You’re an idiot,” Kurt said, his beaming smile outlined by the pale moonlight of the full moon. “I’m an idiot…”

“What?”

“Read me.”

For some reason, none of this situation was becoming clearer and “What?” seemed to be the only response Blaine could give.

“Read me, you absolutely perfect and oblivious idiot.”

Blaine was still ridiculously confused, but agreed nonetheless. He felt the same things he felt earlier—the sudden and deep rush of affection, the nerves that were simultaneously passed by a feeling of security—basically everything he felt for Kurt.

“I don’t understand,” he said, confusion taking up permanent residence on his face. “Finn’s not here.”

“Finn’s not the one I have a crush on.” 

“Then… who?”

Kurt stared at Blaine incredulously.

“Oh my god, do I have to do  _ everything _ ?” he mumbled, before reaching down and pulling Blaine by the front of his shirt so that he had to tiptoe in order to close the space between their lips.

Blaine would have been lying if he said he hadn’t dreamt of a moment like this, except, this was so,  _ so  _ much better than anything his brain could have conjured up. The secure warmth of his best friend’s mouth against his, a stark contrast to the chilly Ohio air, Kurt tugging on Blaine’s shirt even harder, as if it were possible to bring them closer together.

Everything except  _ that  _ stopped. All the emotions, all the fear—it all went blank because this, right here, was everything.

After what might’ve been a minute or seven hours (Blaine was too dazed to tell), Kurt finally released him. 

“Oh.”

“Yeah,  _ oh,” _ Kurt teased, face flushed and smile wide.

“It’s me, you have a crush on, isn’t it?” he asked sheepishly.

“Why don’t you kiss me again and find out,” Kurt replied before Blaine surged forward to meet him again.

Twenty minutes later, Finn found them curled up in the bed of his truck together.

“Oh, my god, it finally fucking happened,” the tallest of the three said, chuckling. “It’s a Halloween miracle.”

Blaine pulled away from Kurt, their lips parting with an almost comical pop. “Jesus, Finn!” Kurt cried. “Warn a guy, will you?”

“I have the feeling this is gonna happen a lot more from this day on, so like, just leave a sock on the door or something.” Finn suggested. “We gotta get you in the cab, though,” he pointed out. “Burt’s waiting for us at the 24 hour emergency clinic.”

Blaine helped Kurt off the bed of the truck and into the cab, careful not to worsen his fresh injury. 

As they rode in the cab together—Kurt with his head in Blaine’s lap while he carefully caressed Kurt’s hair—Blaine couldn’t help but think that he had a new favorite holiday.


End file.
